Connect: Different Faiths Shared Values

First published in 2004, this publication continues to be widely used.

Big myth 1: Well, they may say they’re religious but no-one believes any of that stuff

They do and it makes a big difference to their lives: “My faith has given me the confidence and motivation to succeed in all aspects of my life. It has encouraged me to treat others with respect and understanding, as they too are part of God’s creation.”

Mohammed, Muslim

“My faith has provided me with strength when I’ve needed it, helped me to tell right from wrong, and given me a way of sorting out what really matters from what doesn’t.” Viren, Jain

Big myth 2: Religious people are just a bunch of fanatics Turn on the TV and you can see story after story about conflict and problems around the world. A bomb has gone off. A presenter is saying that religious fanatics are the cause.

Religion can receive a bad press. Over the centuries, religious people have stood up for what they believed: from founders of faiths and prophets, to followers like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. Being strong in your views does not make you a “fanatic”. Believing in the fundamental importance of the teachings of a faith does not make you a “fundamentalist” in the negative sense of a religious extremist

Big myth 3: Religion divides people. All the religions hate each other really

Nothing puts people off like inter religious hatred and squabbling. It’s true that there

have been centuries of mistrust and out and out rivalry. People have sometimes killed or been killed in the name of religion (even though religion may well not have been the actual cause of the problem). But followers of the different world faiths can live together peacefully.

There are several examples of youth inter faith groups and activities.